The Smashing Machine

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2:30

The Smashing Machine

R,

2025,

2h 3m,

Biography/

Drama/

Action/

Sports

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71%

308 Reviews

Tomatometer

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Popcornmeter

71%

Tomatometer

308 Reviews

Popcornmeter

The true story of mixed martial arts and UFC fighter Mark Kerr, whose obsession with greatness made him a legend -- and nearly cost him everything.

Critics Consensus

Dwayne Johnson goes the distance with his transformative turn as Mark Kerr in The Smashing Machine, a gritty biopic that sidesteps cliché even at the expense of narrative satisfaction while still landing the dramatic body blows that count.

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Tim Cogshell

FilmWeek (LAist)

Dec 31, 2025

I thoroughly enjoyed the performances in this particularly in this movie. The movie is a little bit mixed... Dwayne Johns and Ryan Bader really captured these characters.

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Peter Travers

The Travers Take

Oct 31, 2025

3/4

It'll be a hardsell for audiences to accept Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as a genuine actor ready to emerge from the exhibitionist surface of his wrestler’s body and indestructible movie-star appeal. But he does that here and passes with flying colors.

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Sergio Burstein

Los Angeles Times

Oct 14, 2025

This is a machine not worth opposing. [Full review in Spanish]

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Don Kaye

Moviefone

Jul 27, 2026

75/100

The main focus of The Smashing Machine – Dwayne Johnson’s transformative performance – is what works best.

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Lexi Amoriello

Movie Recs by Lex

Jul 10, 2026

It truly feels like instead of making a straightforward biopic about Mark Kerr, Benny Safdie watched the 2002 documentary The Smashing Machine and was so enamored with it that he wanted to adapt it into a narrative film.

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Andrew Kendall

Stabroek News

Jun 21, 2026

The domestic drama is a foreground for the masculine ambitions and the ambivalence of manliness as masquerade.

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Benny Safdie

Director

Dwayne Johnson

Mark Kerr

Emily Blunt

Dawn Staples

Ryan Bader

Mark Coleman

Bas Rutten

Self

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Igor Vovchanchyn

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The Smashing Machine: Trailer 1

2:30

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Synopsis

The true story of mixed martial arts and UFC fighter Mark Kerr, whose obsession with greatness made him a legend -- and nearly cost him everything.

Director: Benny Safdie
Producer: Benny Safdie, Dwayne Johnson, Eli Bush, Hiram Garcia, Dany Garcia, David Koplan
Screenwriter: Benny Safdie
Distributor: A24
Production Co: Out for the Count, Seven Bucks Productions, A24
Rating: R (Language and Some Drug Abuse)
Genre: Biography, Drama, Action, Sports
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 3, 2025, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 4, 2025
Runtime: 2h 3m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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